Dormant trust balance report
Open a trust transaction list (.csv or .xlsx) with a date, an amount, and a client or matter on each row: the same export the negative-balance scanner reads. Type an as-of date and a period in years or months. The report takes every client's balance on the as-of date and the date of its last activity, and lists each balance above zero whose last activity is before the cutoff, with its age. Balances below zero are listed on their own. The listed, active, and below-zero balances are added up and proved to equal the trust total.
The file is read in your browser and stays on this device. Nothing is uploaded.
The file is read in this browser and is not uploaded.
These are matched from the header words. Check them and change any that are wrong. Use either one amount column, or the money-in and money-out columns.
The tool has no period of its own. The length that applies is set by the rules that govern the account, which differ from state to state, and it is typed here. The cutoff is the as-of date less the period; a balance above zero is listed when its last activity is before the cutoff.
Balances carried in (optional)For a client whose money was in trust before the first row of the file: the balance then, and the date of that client's last activity before the file starts. Clients not listed here start at zero.
| Client or matter | Balance carried in | Last activity date |
|---|
Balances with no activity since the cutoff
Client balances below zero
Rows with no client or matter
Totals
Every client or matter
The same transaction list opens in the negative-balance scanner, which walks every client balance date by date, and the three-way reconciliation report compares the bank, the journal, and the client ledger balances for one date.
What gets checked
- The cutoff is the as-of date less the period typed, worked out a second way with a different calendar routine.
- Every client balance re-adds from its carried-in balance and its rows on or before the as-of date, on a second pass straight from the file.
- Every listed client has a balance above zero and no activity on or after the cutoff, read again from the rows. Every such balance is listed, once, and every listed age is longer than the period.
- Every last activity date and every age is worked out a second way.
- Listed plus active plus below-zero balances, plus any rows with no client or matter, equals the trust total; and the trust total equals the carried-in balances plus every row on or before the as-of date, added a second way.
- Every row is counted once: on or before the as-of date, or after it and left out. A row that could not be read is listed with the reason and the report is marked not verified.
- Balances below zero and rows with no client or matter are shown as warnings beside the arithmetic checks.
How it works
- Open the transaction list. Drop a .csv or .xlsx export of trust account transactions with a client or matter on each row. It is read in the browser. The report sees only the rows in the file, so the export has to reach back to each client's last activity, or the earlier balance is carried in.
- Check the column mapping. Columns are matched from the header words: date, client or matter, amount (or separate money-in and money-out columns), check number, and description. Any choice can be changed.
- Type the as-of date and the period. The as-of date is the date the balances are taken on; rows after it are left out. The period is a whole number of years or months, and the tool has none of its own. Optionally carry in balances from before the first row, each with its last activity date.
- Read and export. The listed balances come first, oldest last activity first, each with its age. Then come balances below zero, rows with no client or matter, the totals, and every client. Download Excel or CSV, print, or save the certificate.
Worked example
A made-up trust account: twelve rows for six clients, no carried-in balances, the as-of date typed as 2026-09-30, and the period typed as 3 years, so the cutoff is 2023-09-30.
| Date | Check no. | Payee | Client or matter | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019-04-08 | Deposit - settlement | Juniper estate | $12,000.00 | |
| 2019-06-14 | 2011 | Distribution to heirs | Juniper estate | -$11,250.00 |
| 2020-01-15 | Deposit - settlement | Aspen matter | $8,000.00 | |
| 2020-02-03 | 2032 | Settlement to client | Aspen matter | -$8,000.00 |
| 2021-02-01 | Deposit - retainer | Maple matter | $2,500.00 | |
| 2021-05-20 | 2087 | Court reporter | Maple matter | -$1,812.40 |
| 2022-11-03 | Deposit - closing funds | Spruce closing | $40,000.00 | |
| 2022-11-10 | 2140 | Payoff to lender | Spruce closing | -$39,875.15 |
| 2023-08-15 | Deposit - retainer | Willow matter | $1,000.00 | |
| 2023-10-02 | 2201 | Filing fee | Willow matter | -$350.00 |
| 2024-06-03 | Deposit - recording costs | Cedar matter | $300.00 | |
| 2024-06-10 | 2261 | Recording fees | Cedar matter | -$325.00 |
Three balances are listed, oldest first: Juniper estate $750.00, last activity 2019-06-14, age 7 years, 3 months, 16 days; Maple matter $687.60, last activity 2021-05-20, age 5 years, 4 months, 10 days; Spruce closing $124.85, last activity 2022-11-10, age 3 years, 10 months, 20 days. Together they are $1,562.45. Willow matter's $650.00 is active: its deposit is before the cutoff, but its check on 2023-10-02 is after it. Aspen matter is at $0.00 and is not listed, though its last activity is in 2020. Cedar matter is at -$25.00 and is listed on its own as below zero. Listed $1,562.45 + active $650.00 + below zero -$25.00 = $2,187.45, the trust total of all twelve rows. The arithmetic checks pass; the balance below zero is a warning.
The example uses made-up names and numbers.
Questions
What period does the report use?
Only the one typed. The tool has no table of state rules and no period of its own. The length that applies to a trust account is set by the rules that govern it, which differ from state to state, and it is typed here in years or months.
How is the cutoff worked out?
It is the as-of date less the period: the same day of the month, that many months or years earlier, or the last day of that month when it is shorter (March 31 less one month is the last day of February). A balance is listed when its last activity is before the cutoff; activity on the cutoff date itself is not listed. Ages are counted back from the as-of date the same way, so every listed age is longer than the period.
What counts as activity?
A row for that client or matter with an amount other than zero, dated on or before the as-of date, or the last activity date typed for a carried-in balance. A row with an amount of zero is not counted. Contact that is not a row in the file, such as a letter or a call, is not in the file and is not counted.
What if the file starts after some clients' last activity?
A balance with no recent activity may have no rows at all in a recent export. The report sees only the rows in the file, so the export has to reach back to each client's last activity, or the earlier balance is carried in: the client, the balance before the first row, and the date of its last activity. Clients not carried in start at zero.
Why are balances below zero listed separately?
A balance below zero means more was paid out for that client than was received. It is listed on its own with its last activity and age, shown as a warning, and kept in the totals, so listed, active, and below-zero balances still add up to the trust total. It is never in the list of balances above zero.
Is a listed balance unclaimed or abandoned?
The list shows balances by amount and last activity only. Whether a balance counts as unclaimed or abandoned is set by the rules that apply, and the report makes no statement about it.
Does the report say where or when the money goes?
No. It lists balances, dates, and ages, and proves the totals. It does not say what any rule requires, whether a balance is reported, or where or when money goes.
This tool calculates and checks numbers. It is not legal, tax, or medical advice.
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